~ a New Yorker's American History blog

Sunday afternoon coffee

I spent the morning putting things in order in the new apartment upstairs. I’d say 95% of our belongings have now been transferred up there. I am actually downstairs again at the moment because the gas and internet are not yet on in the new place. I came down at 8:00 am to boil the water for the French press before going back up with the brewed coffee and doing some things. It has been a stressful Memorial Day Weekend with so much going on, but I’m looking at it as a little adventure; it’s the only way. I’m going to finish grading papers tonight and my colleague and I are going to get together tomorrow and compute the final grades, which are due Tuesday midnight. It’s bee one of “those weeks” but I was thankfully able to get a few days off, which has made things so much easier. I’m looking at the bright side and seeing the move as a fresh start. We have even managed to throw away a great deal.

Ray Knight walks down the red carpet to greet teammates from the 1986 Mets. Note the sell-out crowd.

A friend and I squeezed in the Mets/Dodgers game last night on what turned out to be an unseasonably warm evening. The 1986 Mets celebrated their World Seres before the game. I must say that even thirty years and three Red Sox championships later I was surprised at how much it hurt to watch. Still it was fun meeting older folks–that is, people my age–enjoying the thing. Waiting in line at the john I had a good conversation with a couple of good-natured guys who remembered ’86 so fondly. Of course I didn’t tell them I was rooting for the other team during that great long ago. We got to talking about where the years went. I’m glad the Mets are home this Memorial Day Weekend and that we had a chance to go.

I noted happily that the Washington Nationals are also home this weekend. I don’t think it was planned this way–that would make too much sense–but it’s great when the Nationals play at home over Memorial Day Weekend. Rolling Thunder is going on. The President usually appears at Arlington. Baseball in the capital at this time seems so appropriate. It really should be an annual thing.